“I don’t give in, I don’t give up, I don’t take no for an answer.” – Doris Roberts

In honor of her passing, it’s only fitting to use a quote by the legendary actress Doris Roberts. You may know her best from “Everybody Loves Raymond” playing Ray’s mother Marie. I personally love her role as Mrs. Merkle in the Hallmark movies “Mrs. Miracle” and “Call Me Mrs. Miracle” both based on novels by Debbie Macomber.

I’m not going to expand on this one, but just let the words speak for themselves.

“That which we are most destined to do in life, we are often the most afraid of.” – Brad Thor

I like this one. And when you think about it, it is totally true.

We are afraid to become what we are meant to be. But why? Is it the fear of falling? The fear of failing? The fear of actually obtaining something we have desired for, for so long?

What we need to work on, is not letting the fear take over and hold us back. You will never know about something unless you try. And when you do go about and try, you may find that the fear that tried holding you back, was not necessarily an “irrational” fear, but a fear that could easily be conquered.

Simply put, you won’t know unless you try. So, go ahead and try. What are you waiting for?

If you are passionate about something, nothing will get in your way and try to stop you. No matter how much the odds seem to be stacked against you, you can and will prevail.

The hardest part in anything that we do is always the getting started part. But once you can get yourself motivated to get started, you will take off.

Whether it’s the fear. Lack of motivation. Laziness. Afraid of the unknown. Etc. Etc. Etc. Say SCREW IT and just DO IT!

Let’s face it, starting things is scary. A new school. A new job. An interview. A new project. Getting started is always half the battle.

But, if you start something, you are already ahead. And each day you continue to work/do something, the farther you get. The more you can accomplish. And who knows what successes can be reached. The sky’s the limit. Unless you go into outer space or something 🙂

Don’t tip toe it. Dive (or jump) right in. Put both feet in right from the get go.

Nothing CAN hold you back. Nothing WILL hold you back. The future is YOURS and what YOU make of it!

“You are never too old to set another goal or to dream a new dream.” – C.S. Lewis

Age is nothing but a number. You are never too old to do something. Or to try something new. So don’t let age stand in your way of anything.

Setting new goals and dreaming new dreams keeps us young. Keeps us moving. Keeps us living.

And maybe, just maybe, if you have an existing dream/goal or a new one, maybe you were meant to have it when you are older. Maybe you weren’t ready for it yet, so the universe kept it from you until you were ready to achieve it or think it.

So much of our lives are based on the decisions that we get forced to make, leading our lives in one direction or the other. If you dwell on the past, don’t. If you regret a decision you made, don’t. You can’t go back, just forward. And those previous decisions that you made are the ones that shape your life today. How you act. How you think. The people that you have met. And based off of those, are what your dreams and goals are made of today.

Just like the saying “you can’t teach an old dog new tricks.” Yes you can. If the dog is willing. So for yourself, be willing, and be open.

Do what makes you happy. No matter your age. Just because you are a certain age doesn’t mean that you can’t re-invent yourself, choose a different career, etc, etc, etc. Successful people are those who make goals and accomplish them (or at least try to) over and over. Even if it takes years, don’t stop trying, don’t give up.

“There’s a big, wonderful world out there for you. It belongs to you. It’s exciting and stimulating and rewarding. Don’t cheat yourselves out of this promise.” – Nancy Reagan

I wanted to chose a quote in honor of former First Lady Nancy Reagan, who passed away yesterday (Sunday 3/6/16) morning.

There were definitely many memorable quotes I could have chosen, but this one spoke to me the most (especially for what I am trying to do with Motivational Mondays).

“There’s a big, wonderful world out there for you. It belongs to you.”

Yes indeed! The world belongs to us. The world belongs to you. Make yourself a part of it. There is enough room for everyone out there. Make your name. Make your mark in it. For whatever you choose to do.

“Don’t cheat yourselves out of this promise.”

Don’t let the time slip away from the grasp of your fingers. Grab it. Grab life by the horns and pull. Pull hard. You can do it. If at a time you have fallen. Brush the dirt off. Get up. And get at it again. We all fail. Everyone fails. But the winners get back up. No matter how tough it is. No matter how much blood, sweat, and tears they may shed. Get up. GET UP! As long as you try. You win. You are a winner.

We all have struggles. Especially internal ones. And fears. Lots of fears. But be strong. There are many people rooting for you. Even if you don’t know it. Even if you don’t even know them. Someone out there has your back. Let your light shine. And let your light shine brightly.

I know this is all easier said than done. I’ve been there. And done that. And guess what? I’ve been there and done that over and Over and OVER again! But, I’m not going to give up. Not that easily. I’ve got people rooting for me. People in my corner. I’m slowly opening up a little more about my dreams and goals to some people, and they have been supportive. And that means the world to me. And when I sit there and let myself down, I am letting them down too. So that helps to push me more. It’s bad enough to be a failure to myself, but to others, that’s the worst. That’s what I need though. The fear of letting others down.

Your life belongs to you. Your dreams and goals and loves belong to you. Don’t even let anyone tell you that you are not good enough, that you will never be able to do this or that.

It’s a good thing to keep in the back of our minds. That no matter what happens to us, we can always “start over”. If something is bothering us, something is against us, or we want to make a change in our lives to better ourselves to to make our dreams/goals to come true – we can start at any moment. It doesn’t have to be a certain time, or a certain day, or a certain month, or a certain age.

Every Moment (every minute of every day of every month of every year) can become a fresh beginning.

“There are only two days in the year that nothing can be done. One is called yesterday and the other is called tomorrow, so today is the right day to love, believe, do and mostly live.” – Dalai Lama XIV

Don’t worry about what happened yesterday, because it is in the past, and it cannot be changed.

Don’t worry about what will happen tomorrow, because tomorrow is in the future and anything can happen.

Worry about today.

Live for today.

Do what you can today, instead of pushing it off to do tomorrow, because tomorrow is never guaranteed.

~~~

I’m working on this one. The little free time I have, I find myself just vegging and not wanting to do anything. But I need to find the strength within to motivate my butt and get shit done.

“It does not matter how slowly you go as long as you do not stop.” – Confucius

There is no time limit on your dreams and goals. As long as you put in the time, no matter how little, as long as you just keep doing it, it will add up.

Do not stop.

Do not give up.

Keep on truckin’!

In our busy lives, sometimes it can be hard to find the time to work on us (dreams, goals, etc). And it is hard to remember that things don’t just happen overnight, no matter how much we would like them to. “Rome wasn’t built in a day.”

So if you can, try to find the time. Even if it is as little as 5 minutes. Over time, it adds up, and your efforts will be rewarded.